48% parents want schools to open post vaccination of children: Study

NEW DELHI: A survey conducted by the online platform ‘Local Circles’ has found that 48 per cent parents want schools to reopen only after their children have been vaccinated. The respondents of the study included 32,000 parents of which, 47 per cent were based in tier 1 districts, 27 per cent in tier 2, and 26 per cent are from tier 3,4 and rural districts.

The findings of the study have come at a time when states like Punjab, Haryana, Odisha and Rajasthan have partially reopened their schools. Moreover, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh have also permitted the schools to reopen from August 16, but under strict COVID-19 restrictions.

The study also found that around 30 per cent parents were ready to send their wards back to schools only when COVID-19 infection cases in their districts come down to zero. It also added that 21 per cent of the respondents would send their children to schools regardless of the availability of vaccines or the cases coming down to absolute zero in their districts.

Another survey conducted by Local Circles in June showed that 37 per cent of the parents were unwilling to send their children back to schools without complete vaccination. The number has increased in July, which can be due to the announcement that a COVID-19 vaccine for children in also in the development phase. Experts suggest that the ZYCOV-D vaccine, developed by Zydus Cadila, a Gujarat-based pharmaceutical company, could be the first COVID-19 vaccine which will be approved for all above the age of 12.